Gun woke up to a call from Tay. "My pet! What time do you have to be on set? I'll drive you there." He said really loudly. Gun muffled, "12pm." "Oh so late, then we should hang out beforehand! I'm on my way!" He said before hanging up. Gun looked at the time. It was 7:30am! He groaned and forced himself to get up and get ready before the ball of energy arrived.
Gun texted Tay to just come in as the door was unlocked and proceeded to scroll through social media. He saw several friends' posts. He came across a shirtless pic of Joss. "Oh he's hot." Tay said startling Gun. He looked up at Tay, "You scared me Phi!." Then he saw his phone, "Noooo. I liked his picture." Gun whined. Tay sat next to Gun on the couch. "What about it? He looks hot, and the picture was done at a great angle." He said with his photographer perspective. Gun glared at Tay clearly not amused. "Don't pretend you don't know. I'm sure New told you about me and him." Gun bluntly said. Tay slowly nodded, "It was actually P'Nook who spilled the beans. Honestly I'm hurt that you haven't told me anything." Tay pouted. "I'm sorry Phi, it's just it was never serious so there was no point in telling anyone. Besides, it clearly didn't work out with us." Gun explained. "Don't worry about it Nong. I'm always here for you if you need to unburden yourself." Tay patted Gun's hair. Gun swatted his hand and fixed his hair. "So Luke is the first hopeful from the dating program. What are we thinking? Does the model have a shot at winning your heart?" Tay inquired.
Gun gave it some serious thought. "In the program, I think we have really good compatibility, but for real life, I don't think I could get in a relationship with him. He is Joss' best bro after all. It'd be too awkward and messy." Tay was quiet for the longest time. He stood up and knelt in front of Gun. He held both of Gun's hands, "Nong, listen to me seriously." He said with so much sincerity, "Do not close yourself to love. Don't find an external reason for not giving someone a chance. Listen to your heart, hell if it's Joss' father or even Oab's cousin, as long as they make you happy in life, let them in." Gun kept staring at Tay. Not sure why his sincerity left him in awe. Gun finally smiled, "Such wise words from my pet." "Woof." Tay played along. "Gun, before you know it, someone will already be in your heart and you will love them regardless of who their friends are or what social status they are in, and in sickness and health and all the marriage requirements." Tay started getting off topic. "Phi, let's go eat. I'm starving, then you can drop me off at the set. I think it's at a café today." Gun suggested before Tay could start to talk about something else. Tay eagerly agreed.
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During the drive, Tay was letting Gun know the stories behind the songs he sang to which Gun was actively listening. He always enjoyed listening to Tay's stories. Gun was on Tay's phone choosing the next song when Off's name popped up. Gun almost dropped Tay's phone. Since Tay's phone was connected to his car, Tay answered Off's call through the car screen. Tay greeted, "What's up old man?" Gun bit his tongue so he didn't say anything. "Old man?! We're the same age!" Off replied. Gun's heart skipped a beat just listening to Off's voice, it's been so long since he had heard him. He didn't want to admit it, but he missed his tone. "Anyways, are you free for breakfast?" Off continued. "Sorry friend, I'm hanging out with Nong Gun today." Tay casually responded. The line suddenly went silent for a good minute. "Peng hello??" Tay said. "Alright. I'll call you later." Off said and immediately hung up. Gun released the breath he didn't realize he was holding. "Sorry Nong. I didn't consider your feelings." Tay apologized. "It's okay Phi, I should be the one apologizing to you for putting you in this situation." Gun replied. Tay vigorously shook his head, "Not at all Gun." Tay smiled, "We're here! Let's go eat sushi, then I'll drop you off at the café." Gun put on a smile, he was starving and sushi sounds amazing!
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Once they arrived at the sushi place, they spotted New at one of the tables. "Newwiee~ mind if we sit with you?" Gun asked eagerly, excited to see one of his besties. New smiled and gestured towards the seats in front of him. "You're always welcomed." New said. "Did you come here by yourself?" Tay asked. "I was supposed to meet my manager, but he texted and said he couldn't get out of the meeting. So I can just order whatever I want and put it on the company card," New explained with a mischievous glint in his eyes, "So order whatever you want, even the expensive sashimi." "Score!" Tay exclaimed.
After catching up their food finally arrived. They were eating in peace when New asked about Gun's dating show. "Oh, the first contestant is Luke and they went on a gym date and he made Gun sweat." Tay answered. Gun rolled his eyes at Tay's inability to keep the date details a secret. "No one is supposed to know until it airs." Gun lectured Tay. Tay covered his mouth and slapped his lips. "Hey! I'm not a regular consumer of television." New pouted," Besides I have to know so I can help you choose wisely! Speaking of which, be careful Gunnie." New said that last part in a serious tone. Gun looked at him curiously, waiting for him to continue. "I went on a photoshoot yesterday, and I heard a couple of models gossip. Apparently it's a known rumor in the modeling world that Luke is in love with Joss. I didn't believe it at first. But our managers are good friends, and I overheard their conversation." New began to explain. "Overheard, or eavesdropped." Tay chimed in. New completely ignored Tay and continued, " Luke's manager was pissed because Luke was already scheduled to start filming a new drama and at the very last minute, Luke dropped it. I didn't know he joined the dating show until the #LukeGun trend took off." New finished. Gun absorbed all the information. He was definitely going to find out if that was the case later. Gun glanced at Tay and mouthed, "Too Messy," and shook his head no.
Tay just nodded and agreed with Gun's decision.
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"Text me when you're done and I'll come pick you up." Tay said as Gun left his car. Gun agreed and went directly to hair and makeup without greeting anyone. Gun put on the couple tee that Luke gave him. The staff and crew loved the idea and thanked Gun and Luke for their creativity.
During filming, Gun played along perfectly. They had macaroons, tea, and played a couple of games to pass the time. This time Gun won. Once shooting was over, Gun finally had a chance to talk to Luke alone. "Luke, let's talk." Gun initiated the conversation. Gun was a direct person, and he didn't like playing games. He figured he would just ask Luke directly and save everyone lots of time. "What's up, Gun?" Luke asked. "You're in love with Joss. Is that why you're here?" Gun asked.
Luke was taken aback by Gun's bluntness. "I..I...I...We're... best...fr-friends." Luke stuttered. Gun rolled his eyes about to tease the hell out of Luke, " That's not the question. I know you guys are best bros, but are you in love with him?" Luke's eyes revealed his feelings. He slightly nodded yes. Gun beamed at the confirmation. "I honestly believe you are the only person he's willing to settle down for." Gun told Luke. Luke was confused and had no idea what Gun was talking about. "I did some thinking. Whenever I was with Joss, he always prioritized you, Luke. He always blew off our dates by saying he already made plans with you. At first I thought he was lying, but you or he would post something on social media. Now that I think about it again, we ended things the same week you went abroad for a runway show. Didn't he join your trip at the last minute?" Gun explained arching his eyebrow hoping Luke would take the hint. "That's all speculation Phi. Besides, you know how Joss is." Luke countered. "All I know Luke, is that you would do anything for this man, even if it means putting your career on hold." Luke's mouth dropped when he found out that Gun knew about his other project. "All I'm saying is, if you're willing to do this much for him, have the courage and make the first damn move. Because I know Joss and that man is a fucking coward and will not do anything if he thinks it will ruin the friendship." Gun advised.
Luke took in all of Gun's words and broke into a smile. "Thank you Phi. I probably needed to hear that." Luke replied. "No problem. I'm still keeping the tee shirts though, they're hella soft." Gun lightened the mood. Luke chuckled. "By the way, there's no way in hell I'm choosing you for WGM. And as emotional compensation for not being virtually married to the most adorable person you will ever meet, I called the director of the new drama you dropped. Your schedule is booked solid throughout the next month since you need to make up for the delay." Gun said. "Thank you Gun! Thank you!" Luke expressed his gratitude.
"I was told not to tell you anything. But you've done so much for me that the least I can do is give you a heads up," Luke started, "Your next partner for this show is Oab."
Gun's smile quickly dropped, "Shit."
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A/N: Love LukeGun but Luke & Joss friendship are goals.
